Russian President Vladimir Putin must take the peace process seriously and start "playing by the rules". This was stated by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte during a briefing, reports UNN.
Details
Rotte said this, answering journalists' questions about whether Putin made a mistake by sending a low-level delegation to the negotiations.
"The ball is now clearly on his side of the field, on his court. He must play "by the rules". He must take the desire for peace seriously. Therefore, I think that all the pressure is now on Putin. He understands this. I know him very well. We had many negotiations when I was the Prime Minister of the Netherlands. He knows very well that the ball is in his court, that he has problems, that he made a big mistake by sending this low-level delegation. And I think it is very good that the Ukrainians sat down at the negotiating table. They sent a delegation that is really ready to negotiate a ceasefire, etc. I am very happy with the role that the US is playing. This is really important. President Trump broke the deadlock. Obviously, he is taking the initiative in all of this, which is extremely helpful," Rutte said.
Recall
Earlier, Rutte stated that Putin did not take advantage of Zelensky's proposal for negotiations, sending a low-level delegation to Turkey.